doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com Rabbits

I grew up in SE Wisconsin and I, too, very much enjoyed hunting cottontails with a shotgun. (.22's tended to be used less because, even then, my chosen hunting grounds were pretty thickly settled and were beginning to be "built up".) I also understand that coyotes have pretty much destroyed rabbit hunting, there. The same has happened here in Western New York.

This is really too bad because "bunny busting" has been an excellent introduction to hunting for many young people. Even now, if I had a choice, and I could only hunt one "critter", it would be "Molly Cottontail". (In fact,if, after I die, I find myself kicking brushpiles and I have an old single-shot 12 gauge loaded with #6s in my hands, I may not have to ask where I ended up!)

Mike,

I've seen a similar method used. Only a 1" slit was made at the rear of the abdomen, the rabbit was grasped around the rib cage and squeezed while swinging like a baseball bat. The innards would fly out the slit.....caution should be used.

You guys know that with all this talk of rabbits, the next LOGICAL topic for discussion is recipes for their preparation!!!

On a cottontail, you just squeeze the innards down toward the tail, like a tube of toothpaste. Then, swing it like a whip toward the ground, and everything inside blows out. Step on the remaining point of attachment, and pull. A 2lb rabbit becomes less than 1lb.
They sure are nice against the kidneys when it's 0 degrees out. You can feel them radiate through your gamebag.

A rabbit should be skinned, washed, de-shotted, and then cut into 6 pieces. 2 rear legs, the back can be cut in half, then the front shoulders/legs. Some soak them in salt water overnight.
Pat dry w/ a papper towel.
Now, set up a pot with a couple onions, and a carrot or two. Add 2 qts salted water, and bring to a simmer. Par boil the rabbits for half an hour or so. Soft, not rolling boil. Till when poked with a fork the fork goes in. Longer won't hurt them.
Dry, and pan fry with seasoned flour or your favorite chicken recipe.

Hassenpfeffer takes about a week to make. But it is sooo good.

First time I saw he "toothpaste" trick was this year during pheasant season. My brittney disapeared into a brush pile and came out the other side with a rabbit in his mouth. First time that's ever happened (and the thought crossed my mind to give him a swift kick in the rear) but he brought it over, dropped it at my feet and went back to looking for birds. My hunting buddies were hootin and hollerin about how "cool" that was so I just went with it. Rabbit had one tooth mark in it and a broken neck. Hunting partner grabbed the rabbit, shook it towards the ground (to break loose the diaphram) and then squeezed it like a tube of toothpaste. Inards came out, rabbit in the pouch. Whole thing took about 20 seconds. Slickest method I ever saw!